Wireless local area networks (WLANs) are very widely used for wireless local connectivity and Internet access. In typical WLAN deployments, stations (STAs) must associate with an access point (AP) in order to gain access to a network. These STAs are dependent on the AP with which they are associated to communicate.
More flexible wireless connectivity is enabled by mesh networks, such as IEEE 802.11s based mesh networks and various other ad-hoc networks. Wireless links or multi-hop paths between multiple mesh STAs or APs can be established to replace AP-STA distribution. Devices traditionally categorized as clients can benefit from the larger multihop coverage, ability to establish peer-to-peer wireless links with neighboring clients and APs in a mesh network.